July 23, 2008

Wooden Toys

My son's first birthday is next week (gasp!) and I've been obsessed with finding him quality wooden toys as gifts. He already has his share of "blinky-blinky" toys that make sounds and light up and I'm sure his birthday will bring more. While I know that babies do enjoy toys with music and lights (and I can appreciate this especially when the toys are educational, as many LeapFrog ones are), it does at some point become overkill.

I started researching wooden toys when we received a toy by Haba as a gift. Around the same time, I had really started paying attention to all the toy recalls, including the lead paint problems. I started seeking out toys that were European made--the quality of these toys seemed superior to me. They seem safer to me (although some European companies do subcontract their work to other companies so you really need to do your research). But I can't deny that a part of me favors the wooden toys because they just are more aesthetically pleasing.

But where to find these toys? Not in Babies R Us or Toys R Us (although they do carry some of the Melissa & Doug line, which includes wooden toys). Some children's boutiques carry European wooden toys. In fact, remember my trip to Lolli Lolli last week? I visited the store again over the weekend and they seem to have organized the toys a little better, which pleased me to no end. Anyway, I found the selection of toys in some stores can be limited so I decided to start searching online.

Here are some websites I've been routinely checking for toys from Haba, Selecta, etc.:

The only place I've actually ordered from is Bright October. Their site isn't as nice looking as some of the others and they don't offer as much product information, but their prices are good and if you do an online search you can find 15% discount coupons. I haven't had any problems with delivery, although they do use DHL. I've found DHL is not particularly recipient-friendly. Since I live in an apartment in the city, I often switch the delivery address to another address if I realize that I won't be home at the time of delivery. USPS and UPS let you re-route packages after the first delivery attempt with no problem. DHL, not so much. So be sure you know you'll be able to receive the package. Here in Philadelphia, you don't want them leaving that package on the steps.

Comments

Wooden Toys

My son's first birthday is next week (gasp!) and I've been obsessed with finding him quality wooden toys as gifts. He already has his share of "blinky-blinky" toys that make sounds and light up and I'm sure his birthday will bring more. While I know that babies do enjoy toys with music and lights (and I can appreciate this especially when the toys are educational, as many LeapFrog ones are), it does at some point become overkill.

I started researching wooden toys when we received a toy by Haba as a gift. Around the same time, I had really started paying attention to all the toy recalls, including the lead paint problems. I started seeking out toys that were European made--the quality of these toys seemed superior to me. They seem safer to me (although some European companies do subcontract their work to other companies so you really need to do your research). But I can't deny that a part of me favors the wooden toys because they just are more aesthetically pleasing.

But where to find these toys? Not in Babies R Us or Toys R Us (although they do carry some of the Melissa & Doug line, which includes wooden toys). Some children's boutiques carry European wooden toys. In fact, remember my trip to Lolli Lolli last week? I visited the store again over the weekend and they seem to have organized the toys a little better, which pleased me to no end. Anyway, I found the selection of toys in some stores can be limited so I decided to start searching online.

Here are some websites I've been routinely checking for toys from Haba, Selecta, etc.:

The only place I've actually ordered from is Bright October. Their site isn't as nice looking as some of the others and they don't offer as much product information, but their prices are good and if you do an online search you can find 15% discount coupons. I haven't had any problems with delivery, although they do use DHL. I've found DHL is not particularly recipient-friendly. Since I live in an apartment in the city, I often switch the delivery address to another address if I realize that I won't be home at the time of delivery. USPS and UPS let you re-route packages after the first delivery attempt with no problem. DHL, not so much. So be sure you know you'll be able to receive the package. Here in Philadelphia, you don't want them leaving that package on the steps.